


doing christmas right this time

by hellsteeth



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pre-Canon, Christmas Fluff, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:07:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28078923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hellsteeth/pseuds/hellsteeth
Summary: The song "Christmas Wrapping" by the Waitresses but make it MSR
Relationships: Fox Mulder/Dana Scully
Comments: 2
Kudos: 31





	doing christmas right this time

_Winter_

Dana Scully hums along to the tinny music being piped into the ski shop as she browses equipment that is entirely foreign to her. She feels like the only soul in the building, which is unfortunate because she could really use some advice as to what she should buy Melissa for Christmas. Thank God Missy’s new girlfriend had gotten her into skiing, providing Dana with a plethora of new gift ideas as the holiday season quickly approaches.

Despite how empty the store is, it appears as if everyone else in DC has had the similar inclination to go skiing, probably encouraged by the uncommonly generous amount of snow the city has been receiving over the last few weeks. Most of the useful ski gear has been bought up, leaving Dana to decide between a set of sleek ski poles and a pair of thick mittens. As she steps back to look at both items and decide between them, a tall figure swoops in and grabs the last remaining ski poles. The air behind him _whooshes_ slightly as he makes a beeline for the registers at the front of the shop.

“Well, looks like I know what I’m buying.” Dana mutters to herself while picking up two pairs of mittens for Missy and her girlfriend. The mittens are probably the safer choice, anyways. She suspects that Missy will spend the majority of her upcoming ski trip flirting and watching her athletic partner from the sidelines. As she makes her way toward the registers, she comes face-to-face with the man who had picked up the poles in a hurry. He stands between her and the counter, regarding her with curious hazel eyes.

“Here,” He says, holding the poles out to her. “I didn’t realize you were about to grab them, too.”

Dana raises an eyebrow, surprised by his kindness. She shakes her head and holds up the mittens. “That’s okay, I think you made the right decision for me,” She shrugs. “You seem like you’re in a rush, anyways.”

The man shrugs and sets the ski poles and a pair of skis on the checkout counter, handing his credit card over to the employee that has appeared out of thin air. “I am.” He winks at her.

Dana, already not one to converse with strangers, surprises herself by asking, “Big trip coming up?”

The man smiles to himself, probably at some inside joke, and shrugs. “In a manner of speaking.”

Dana doesn’t know how to respond to that, so she just looks at him and arches an eyebrow with the same scrutiny that makes her unprepared students shrivel.

Mulder looks out the window of the shop while his ski poles are being wrapped up. “It’s a bit snowier than usual for this time of year, isn’t it?”

Dana nods slowly, feeling as if she’s agreeing to more than he’s letting on. “I suppose, although it’s not completely unheard of to have so much snow in December.” She looks at him quizzically. “What’s the matter? I thought snow was a prerequisite for skiing anyways.”

The man grins excitedly. “It is, but I’m more interested in _why_ the weather is acting up so much, and I intend to find an answer.”

Dana looks at him blankly. “Besides rising air, low pressure, and cold temperatures?”

“Precisely,” The man nods sagely. “I have reason to believe that this weather has a more... _supernatural_ origin. Are you aware that this area experiences a snowstorm like this every thirty-six years that results in multiple fatalities, widespread illness, and avalanches?” He wiggles his eyebrows at her mysteriously, looking silly despite the somber topic. “I think it’s deliberate.”

“Like a curse?”

He looks pleased. “Exactly like a curse.” Scully tries to resist the urge to roll her eyes and loses that fight easily. Mulder laughs. “You think I’m crazy.”

She shakes her head. “I think you’re misguided and grasping at straws when there’s a perfectly logical explanation for this natural phenomenon. Large snowstorms happen every so often, and usually there’s an increase in illnesses like the flu and the common cold when people stay inside all day anyways.”

The strange man shrugs, unbothered by the weight of her reasoning. “Maybe. Or maybe it’s a curse. I’ll find out one way or another.” He takes his purchases from the counter and steps out of her way.

Dana shakes her head and hands her mittens to the clerk. “You’ll catch your death out there if you’re not careful.”

“Then I’ll be careful.” There’s something easy and appealing about this man, a lightness on the surface overlying a serious gravity. She may not believe in curses, but Dana believes him when he says he’ll be careful.

Dana pays for the mittens and starts to make her way toward the exit. The man walks slightly ahead of her, but suddenly stops in his tracks, looking a bit awkward. The movements of his long, slender arms mirror tree branches in the wind as he fumbles for his wallet and pulls out a business card.

“I don’t usually do this, but,” He pauses before thrusting the card out to her and smiling. “If you ever want to debate the possibility of supernatural weather again, give me a call.” A hint of a smirk plays at his lips. Dana pulls her gaze away from them and scans the card. Her eyebrows raise as she takes in the name printed on it and recognition sparks somewhere in her mind. _Oh._ Suddenly, their conversation makes much more sense.

“Spooky Mulder?” She says aloud before she can filter her reaction. The tips of Mulder’s ears turn pink and he cringes at the nickname.

“Just Mulder, if you don’t mind,” He corrects her before cocking his head to the side curiously. “Do I know you from somewhere?”

Dana shakes her head and internally admonishes herself before pulling out her own FBI badge. “No, but I’ve heard your name at the Academy. I teach there.” She tucks her badge away and sticks out her hand. “Dana Scully.”

Mulder shakes her hand, a smile returning to his face. “Nice to meet you, Scully.” He drops her hand and the ghost of his warm skin hugs her fingers as they return to hang at her side. “Is my reputation around the Bureau hurting my chances here?”

It’s clear that he’s joking, but there’s a deeper look of uncertainty behind his goofy smile. Scully pretends to consider the question, biting her bottom lip and placing a hand on her hip. She catches Mulder’s gaze traveling downward appreciatively for just a moment. 

“Not at all,” She answers, receiving a smile in return. “And as long as we’re sharing information,” She fishes around in her purse for one of her own business cards, pulling it out to give to Mulder. He tucks it into his wallet carefully. “Call me sometime and I can tell you _exactly_ how wrong you are about this snow curse and any other supernatural rumor with a perfectly reasonable scientific explanation.”

Mulder laughs. “I will,” He gives her a warm smile before picking up his ski poles and tucking them under one arm. “Happy holidays, Scully.”

“Happy holidays, Mulder.” Scully smiles and watches him leave, already looking forward to their next encounter.

_Spring_

The shrill ring of the phone yanks Dana out of her work-induced stupor. She tears her eyes away from her computer screen to silence the noise before it gives her a headache. Her reflection in the window of her office shows an exhausted stranger, dark shadows under her eyes and messy hair pulled back into a loose ponytail. She barely recognizes herself, but the glint of the cross around her neck confirms that the woman in the reflection _is_ her as opposed to one of her cadavers. Dana answers the phone, stifling a yawn.

“Scully.”

“Dr. Scully, it’s been too long.” The masculine voice on the other end is cheerful and she recognizes it instantly.

“Hello, Agent Mulder,” Dana replies, perking up a little. “Did you ever find proof of the mysterious snow curse?” Her tone is teasing, but not cruel.

Mulder sighs dramatically. “You know, I actually did, but for some reason no one will believe that the greater DC Metropolitan area was cursed by a winter spirit.”

“Hm, I can’t imagine why,” She says playfully. “What can I do for you?”

“I was wondering if you’d like to have lunch with me sometime,” He responds, before amending. “If you want, we can talk about the integrity of bigfoot sightings over appetizers.”

Dana smiles, heart rate picking up at the excitement of being asked out by someone that she’s interested in instead of annoying coworkers and the occasional out-of-line student. “I’d love to. When?”

“How about this weekend?”

Dana glances at her calendar and sighs. “I’m sorry, I’m supposed to be out of town for a conference. What about next week after I get back?”

There’s the sound of papers being rifled through on the other end of the phone followed by a sigh. “I’ll be across the country for a case, I don’t know when I’m getting back.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

They spend the next several minutes trying to find a window of time when they’ll both be free to have dinner, but with her teaching duties increasing and a slew of mind-numbing Bureau meetings coming up for him, they can’t seem to find one. They agree to reconvene and try again soon and Scully hangs up, feeling disappointed.

_Summer_

“Fucking hell,” Dana groans. “I am never going outside again.” She hisses in pain as Melissa gingerly applies aloe vera lotion to the angry red skin of her cheeks and shoulders. She shivers in the incessant air conditioning of her hotel room, her body thoroughly confused at the mingling of both burning and freezing sensations. It all jumbles into a thick cloud of discomfort in her head. Outside, her friend Ellen and Missy’s girlfriend, Denise, still lounge at the pool, unaffected by the cruel glare of the sun.

“I thought you said you put on sunscreen before we picked you up. “Missy says, now slathering a generous handful of the lotion on both of her sister’s arms. Dana jumps at the sudden contact and her sister hums in sympathy.

“I did! And I put it on at the pool, too!” Dana says through gritted teeth. Every inch of her skin feels like an exposed nerve, raw and sensitive. Even a slight disturbance in the air is enough to make her wince. She’ll be puffy and burnt for weeks, and yet there will probably only be more freckles to show for all of her suffering.

Dana closes her eyes and takes a few deep breaths through her nose, trying to block out the overwhelming and conflicting sensations of the aloe and the sunburn. Her cell phone rings from the bedside table.

“Would you mind checking who’s calling?” She asks, hoping that it's someone she can ignore. Melissa wipes her gooey hands on a beach towel and picks up the phone. She answers with a perfunctory _hello_ and then holds the phone away from her face, covering the bottom half with her palm.

“Who’s Mulder?”

Dana’s eyes widen and she reaches for the phone, her tight skin resisting the sudden movement. She pays it and the goo covering her entire top half no mind as she answers and holds the phone next to her ear.

“Hello?” She tries to imitate a person that is not currently in unimaginable pain and does a poor job. Her voice comes across as strained, even to her own ears. 

“Hey Scully, it’s Mulder- are you alright?” She smiles at the sound of his voice.

“Yeah, I’m fine. How are you, Mulder?”

“I’m alright,” He sounds better than _alright_ in her opinion. He sounds chipper. The sound of his voice beckons her to join him in this mood. “I’m calling because I’m taking a little boat excursion out onto Chesapeake Bay to look for Chessie and I was wondering if you’d like to join me.”

“Chessie?”

“The rumored aquatic monster living in the Bay.”

“Oh, of course.” Dana replies. Next to her on the bed, Missy mouths _who’s Mulder?_ dramatically and Dana blushes, not that anyone would be able to tell. She holds up a finger to her sister and sighs.

“Mulder, I’d love to-”

“But?”

“Promise not to laugh.”

“I promise.” Mulder vows.

“I was at the pool this afternoon and I got a terrible sunburn.” Dana admits.

“Oh,” Mulder says awkwardly. After a pause, he clears his throat. “You know, you don’t have to worry about hurting my feelings, Scully. I understand if you don’t want to see me, especially since it’s been so long since we last spoke. No hard feelings.”

Scully shakes her head, even though her only audience is an increasingly-confused Melissa. “No! I’m serious. I burn really easily and I can barely move right now, much less spend all day on a boat. Under any other circumstances I would be there, even though I think that looking for an aquatic monster is a fool’s errand.”

“Shit,” Mulder mumbles under his breath. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Sadly I think I’m just going to have to wait this one out,” Dana says. “Thanks, though. And good luck finding Chessie.” She may think he’s crazy, but she’s sincere when she wishes him luck.

Mulder chuckles. “Thanks. I’ll talk to you soon. Feel better.”

“Thanks, Mulder.”

Dana hangs up and is immediately interrogated by Melissa. While she fields questions about her nonexistent social life, she thinks of Mulder, out sailing on Chesapeake Bay.

_Fall_

The television screen flickers rapidly, its bright glow bouncing off of the empty candy wrappers spread across Dana’s coffee table. She’s seen _Poltergeist_ at least a dozen times since college, but the hand reaching out of the screen suddenly makes her jump every time. It’s not that she’s _scared_ , per se, but the movement still surprises her. She’ll never cop to being scared, although secretly, the anticipation is part of why she loves horror movies so much.

She’s so engrossed in the film and the candy that she should be reserving for trick-or-treaters that she barely hears her telephone ring from across the room. Reluctantly, she pauses the movie and gets up to answer, wiping chocolate from the corners of her mouth.

“Hello?”

“Happy Halloween, Scully!”

Somewhere beyond Mulder’s voice, there is the hum of conversation and music, laughter punctuated with the occasional exclamation.

“Same to you, Spooky,” She teases, voice void of any malice. Mulder snorts in reply. “Sounds like you’re having an interesting night. I’d expect you to be hunting vampires or something on this night of all nights.”

“Nah, I hunted vampires last week.” He doesn’t sound like he is remotely joking. “I’ll tell you all about it later. Anyways, I got home two days early and my friends invited me to their Halloween party. I was wondering if you’d like to come, too. They’re a fun bunch if you can get past being interrogated about where you were when Kennedy was assassinated.”

This is a lot of information to take in. “I wasn’t even alive when Kennedy was assassinated.”

“Scully, I can assure you that this fact will not deter them,” Mulder laughs. “I know this is last minute, but if you don’t have plans I could come and pick you up.”

Dana glances at her television and the rapidly growing pile of wrappers next to her couch. She hasn’t had a trick-or-treater all night, and the odds of one showing up are seeming slimmer with every passing hour. It’s nearly been a year since she’s seen Fox Mulder in person. The opportunity to actually be next to him, despite the strange company, is too good to resist.

“I’d love that.” She smiles into the phone and can almost hear a similar smile invading Mulder’s voice as he asks for her address. She gives it to him and then hangs up, determined to find something in her closet that she can wear to a Halloween party.

An hour and a half later, Dana is beginning to feel ridiculous as she sits on her couch in her low-cut black sweater and jeans, red lipstick still perfect thanks to her staunch refusal to eat any more candy. Now, her stomach growls and she can feel hunger travel up to her head, manifesting as a headache behind her eyes. Five minutes later, she sighs in frustration and kicks her feet back up on the couch, turning the film back on and ripping into another Snicker’s bar. She has two academic degrees, she’s certainly intelligent enough to recognize when she’s been stood up.

As if on cue, just as she’s getting comfortable, the phone rings again. Dana considers not answering before realizing that it could be her sister or her parents.

“Hello.” She says, irritation playing at the edges of her voice.

“Scully, it’s me.”

“What was it this time, Mulder? Did the vampires catch up to you?” She asks sarcastically, too frustrated to bother with pleasantries. He’d said he was only twenty minutes away and now he finally deigns to call, hours later. She feels foolish, like an overeager high schooler. Dana huffs and a strand of red hair falls from behind her ear to tickle her cheek.

Mulder sighs, defeated. “No, one of my tires blew out on the highway and I hit a barrier.”

Dana sits up, eyes wide. She pictures the scene he’s describing and her anger is forgotten, replaced with a buzz of anxiety behind her ribs. “Jesus, are you okay?”

“Yeah yeah, I’m fine. The Gunmen-those friends I was telling you about- gave me a lift home after my car got towed. Sadly it wasn’t as fortunate as I was.”

“Damn, I’m sorry Mulder. I’m glad you’re okay, though.”

“Yeah?” He perks up a little. “I thought you’d want to kill me for standing you up.”

Dana hums in agreement. “Maybe I did a little, but now that I know you didn’t mean to stand me up, I think I can reconsider.”

Mulder lets out a relieved sigh, which carries over the phone line in a whoosh of static. “I promise that I’ll make this up to you, Scully. I really do want to see you.

She smiles bringing her knees up to her chest and hugging them with her free arm. “I want to see you, too.” There’s a beat of comfortable, warm silence before Dana says, “So tell me about these vampires you were hunting.”

He tells her, beginning with the fact that he had been called out to Idaho for a case of mysterious exsanguination. The story is long and dramatic and funny, and he keeps telling it to her while she brushes her teeth and climbs into bed. Dana falls asleep to the sound of Mulder’s voice, warm in her ear despite their distance.

_Winter, Again_

It seems silly to make a turkey for only one person. Dana squints at the bird while opening her oven door just a crack, wondering if she’d be happier in California with her parents and her brother right now. No, she decides, a pathetically small turkey for one and a night of relaxation is the best gift she could give herself for Christmas this year.

While mashing potatoes by hand, Dana’s eyes travel around her apartment and land on the colorful Christmas cards and party invitations that she’d received from friends and family, all taped neatly to her mantle. She could be anywhere on Christmas Eve, at any number of gatherings across the city. But frankly, the year has instilled within her a bone-deep exhaustion that she hasn’t felt since medical school. Ending it with some time to herself seems like a good way to make up for all of the late nights and stress.

Christmas music plays on her kitchen radio and Dana hums along while wiping her hands on a dishtowel and reaching for a fresh bottle of wine. Her hand freezes two inches away from the neck of the bottle as it occurs to her that she’d forgotten one core element of her meal in her rush at the store.

Damn, the cranberry sauce.

She could just forego the side dish or ask one of her neighbors if they have a spare can. But doing so wouldn’t be consistent with giving herself the Christmas she wants, _deserves_ , after a year like this. Unable to admit defeat, Dana shimmies into her boots and coat and crosses her fingers that her turkey will keep unsupervised for twenty minutes.

She shivers in the cold of her car on the way to the store, mindful of the snow that is rapidly piling up on the roads. There hasn’t been this much snow all at once since last year. She thinks of that day at the ski shop and smiles faintly, the swirling frost outside reminding her of Fox Mulder and his snow curse. They haven’t spoken since Halloween and her heart clenches a little, mourning what will probably be remembered as an extended almost.

The grocery store is surprisingly crowded for Christmas Eve. Obviously, Dana hadn’t been the only one who had forgotten the essentials. There is one can of cranberry sauce left and she snatches it up before joining the long line at the one open register.

From her place in line, Dana watches the snow fall onto the cars in the parking lot. It’s peaceful, despite the knowledge that she’ll have to brush it off her window before going home, and it lulls her into a trance as she waits. A few gentle taps on her shoulder break her out of this spell. She turns around, lips pursed and ready to be annoyed with the person behind her.

“What do you think, Scully? Is this worth an investigation?” Standing behind her is none other than Fox Mulder, bundled up in a long coat and holding out a magazine for her inspection. The cover advertises a story about a woman that had given children to human-alien hybrids, complete with scaly green skin and bulbous black eyes.

Dana grins and pretends to consider the picture of the proud mother holding what is clearly a doll. “Hm, sometimes I do wonder if my tax dollars are going toward the right causes.”

“Is that a yes?”

She laughs. “It’s good to see you, Mulder.”

He smiles and puts the magazine back on its display for the next sucker to ponder. “You too. What are you doing out on Christmas Eve?”

Dana holds up the can of cranberry sauce like it’s the holy grail. “I forgot this and I can’t, in good faith, have a Christmas meal without it.”

Mulder raises his eyebrows. “Funny that you should say that, because I was looking for the same thing for my dinner with the Gunmen tomorrow. It looks like you grabbed the last one.” He guiltily holds up a jar of strawberry jam. “Do you think they’ll notice if I put this in a tupperware and bring it instead?”

Dana laughs and shakes her head. “I’ll tell you what,” She bites her bottom lip nervously. Mulder looks intrigued. “You can have half of mine if you join me for dinner tonight.”

Mulder smiles back at her, looking both giddy and relieved as he hands over the jam to the exasperated cashier who has been watching this interaction with poorly concealed impatience. “You’ve got yourself a deal, Scully.”

He brushes her car off for her and follows her home. They share her turkey, no longer so pathetic since it is the perfect size to satiate their collective hunger. After dinner, she starts a fire in the fireplace and they roast marshmallows, a heavy blanket draped over both of their shoulders. He whispers stories of abominable snowmen and Christmas legends to her while she falls asleep, head in his lap and his fingers combing through her soft hair.

_Spring, Again_

“Are you familiar with an agent named Fox Mulder?”

“Yes, I am.”

“How so?”

Dana Scully smirks to herself. “By reputation.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks so much for reading! Please let me know what you think! :)
> 
> Happy holidays!


End file.
